🧠 How the Berlin Wall Sparked The Greatest Marketing Event in Recent History

Hey there, 

Welcome back to the 37th edition of Brandish, 

Your guide to crafting an iconic brand. 

Today, we’re going to be breaking down a pivotal moment that solidified a brand in the history books, 

In the European market, 

And how WWII was the domino that started it all. 

So kick back, 

Grab your Brez, 

And let’s dive into the unorthodox genius of Coca-Cola. 

A Country Divided

First, let’s step back in history and set the stage. 

At the end of WWII, a post-war Germany had been pieced up and divided into 4 Allied occupation zones, 

The eastern half belonged to the Soviets, and the western half was divided into American, British, and French zones. 

Of course, this turned out to be a problem for the oh-so-wonderful Soviets. 

Those who were ‘lucky’ enough to live in the eastern half weren’t the biggest fans of the “workers’ paradise” that Moscow had been kind enough to give them, 

Which caused a mass migration of German citizens to the western territories - not so great for the Soviets. 

Their solution? 

A 9-foot tall, 28-mile long wall, complete with barbed wire, machine guns, and explicit orders to make sure no one tries to flee eastern Germany. 

But why the history lesson? Aren’t we here to talk about Coca-Cola?

Yes. We are. 

Just keep paying attention.

Humpty Dumpty Would’ve Been Proud

Fast forward to 1989. 

After 28 years (how ironic) of the infamous Berlin Wall and a country divided, 

Tensions rose, 

People revolted, 

And the wall came crumbling down. 

But what I want to focus on is one man in particular:

Paul-Gerhard Ritter. 

Paul was the managing director of the Coca-Cola bottler in a Lichterfelde, and when the Wall started coming down, he saw an opportunity…

When he heard the news, he ordered 3 trucks packed to the brim with Coca-Cola to the site where East Berliners were now freely crossing over. 

Within two hours the trucks were picked clean, 

And a newly unified Germany enjoyed Coca-Cola together for the first time in history, 

And in the first week after the fall, 

Two million people drank Coca-Cola as a toast to their freedom. 

This one act by Paul solidified Coca-Cola as the European symbol of freedom and a unified people. 

Now, no one knows whether Paul was just excited about this event or saw it as a once-in-a-lifetime PR opportunity,

But this one moment made Coca-Cola explode into the European Market, and it went down in history as “the drink that unified a broken country”

A Lesson in Branding and Consumer Psychology

I want you to take a second and think about the WHY behind the story I’m telling you.

The psychology behind why this was so effective is simple, 

At face value, all we see are people enjoying a soda at the fall of the Berlin Wall. 

But if we look deeper…

The ENTIRE world just associated Coca-Cola with the largest event of true freedom and joy of the decade.

From that point forward, Coca-Cola was unquestionably THE drink to enjoy when celebrating freedom, joy, and being with the people you love. 

This was a textbook case study of knowing your brand’s identity, 

And seizing an opportunity to leverage an event that the world was watching to showcase it.

Wrapping Up

Now, I’m not saying you need to find the next world event and throw your brand in front of it, 

But what you need to be doing is identifying opportunities that are in line with your brand’s identity and leveraging that to your benefit. 

Yes, what they did was a mix of luck and perfect timing, 

But at its core, all you have is an opportunity for positive publicity, and the b*lls to act on it. 

If you sell premium running socks, show up to a marathon and pass out free pairs. 

If your brand is in the gaming industry, show up at the next convention and showcase your products. 

It doesn't have to be a world-famous event or something as historical as the Berlin Wall, 

It just needs to be an opportunity to showcase YOUR brand in a way that directly aligns with what you stand for. 

And that’s the challenge I’ll leave you with today. 

This next week, find a way to copy what Coca-Cola has done and document ALL of it. 

It may just be the perfect opportunity you need to take your brand to the next level. 

Until next time, 

Ankit